The Chosen One
by Queen Su
Summary: A boy dedicated to the Lord serves in the temple. What adventures lie ahead for him?
1. The Story

**Let me know what you think! : ) The next chapter should be up pretty soon. **

**The Story**

"Will you tell me the story again?" Little five-year-old, Samuel asked his mother Hannah.

They were sitting on the marble steps of the temple. The sun was shining vibrantly and a cool breeze floated on the air. A few people were milling about the temple courtyard down below and were murmuring quietly. Several people were sacrificing and others were talking to the Lord.

"Of course, little one" she replied holding him in her arms.

Samuel snuggled down in his new robe that his mother made him and laid his dark curly head on his mother's shoulder.

"I was sad because I didn't have a little boy." His mother started, "I prayed to the Lord to give me a son for many years."

"Then what happened?" Samuel asked knowing perfectly well what happened next.

"I made a covenant with God." She answered.

"What's a cove-net?" he inquired curiously.

"Covenant. It means a special promise that you cannot bre-…" She explained.

"What was the promise?" Samuel interrupted.

"It was: O Lord Almighty, if you will only look upon your servant's misery and remember me, and not forget your servant, but give me a son, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life." She said quietly.

"What happened after that?" Samuel requested his bright, deep, brown eyes wide with wonder.

"I had a handsome baby boy." Hannah said her eyes sparkling with joy.

"Me!" Samuel exclaimed excitedly.

"Yes." Hannah laughed, "Then when you were two, I brought you here to live with Morra Eli."

"Ema, tell me what my name means." Samuel swayed the conversation.

"Your name means, from the Lord. Because I asked the Lord for you." She whispered in his olive colored ear.

Samuel sat there thoughtfully for a few moments.

"Samuel!" Someone shouted, "Samuel!"

"Eli is calling you." His mother said.

"I don't want to go, ema. I want to stay here with you!" he cried, wrapping his arms around her neck.

"I know, but you must obey Morra Eli. Do you want to obey God?" she asked.

He slowly nodded his head.

"If you don't obey Eli you aren't obeying the Lord."

"Yes Ema." Samuel got up reluctantly and walked away slowly.

Suddenly, he whirled around and ran back to his mother. He ran into her arms and started to cry.

"I don't want you to go!" he cried.

"Shhh…there, there." She comforted him, gently stroking his hair, "I'll see you again next year."

"I know, but I will miss you!"

"I know. I will too." She told him.

He quieted a bit and then she kissed him and wiped away his remaining tears/

"Now go. The Lord will be with you." She commanded softly.

"Yes ema." He said and then ran to go find Eli.

--

Hebrew Translation:

Ema – mother

Morra – teacher


	2. The Call

**Well this is the last chapter! : ) I hope you like it. Make sure to read the last verse!! **

**The Call**

"Hey Sammie boy!" Phinehas called to the ten-year-old. "You still working for the Lord?" he taunted.

Samuel hated the way they called him Sammie. He hated the way Hophni and Phinehas teased him. He hated being younger than them. They were at least ten or fifteen years older than him and did things that God didn't like. They disobeyed Him openly and Samuel hated it.

"Sammie!" Phinehas grabbed Samuel's tunic collar and pulled him close. "You know the Lord just wants to boss you around right? He wants you to be his servant and to follow his rules so you won't be greater than him. You know that, right?"

"Leave me alone!" Samuel gritted his teeth.

"Are you too soft to make your life yourself?" Hophni snarled.

"My sons!" A great, booming, old voice shouted. "Leave the boy alone." It was Eli.

He walked up and said. "I have given you warnings about the way you live. Now leave Samuel alone."

Phinehas let go of Samuel's tunic and shoved him to the dusty ground, muttering something under his breath. Then the two men walked away laughing about something.

"Thanks Morra Eli." Samuel thanked him as he stood up and bushed the dirt from his ephod.

--

Later that night Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord and the lamp of God was still burning. Eli had already gone to bed in another room.

Samuel was thinking about the day as he slowly drifted off to sleep. He was dozing when a strong voice called to him, "Samuel!"

Samuel got up and ran to Eli's room and shook him. "Henay. You called me." He whispered.

Eli rolled over and said. "I did not call you. Go back to sleep."

So Samuel walked back up to his room and lay down. Soon he fell asleep.

"Samuel!" The voice called again.

Samuel rubbed his eyes, yawned, and rushed back to Eli.

"Henay." He awoke the old man. "You called."

"I did not call you. Go back and lie down." Eli groaned.

Samuel did as he was told and went back to sleep.

"Samuel!" The mighty voice called a third time.

He jogged tiredly back to Eli's room and said. "Henay."

"I didn't not call yo-," Eli stopped and his eyes widened. "My son, the Lord is calling you. If He calls you again say speak Lord, your servant is listening."

Samuel nodded and then when back to bed.

"Samuel!" The Lord called to him.

Samuel opened his eyes and saw a bright shining presents standing at the foot of his bedroll. He squinted as the Lord spoke, "Samuel!"

"Speak Lord, your servant is listening." He stuttered, shielding his eyes from the holy light.

"See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears of it tingle. At that time I will carry out against Eli everything I spoke against his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons made themselves contemptible, and he failed to restrain them. Therefore, I swore to the house of Eli, 'The guilt of Eli's house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering." The Lord said with anger in his voice.

Then as suddenly as He had come; he was gone.

Samuel slept peacefully throughout the night. Then when the sun was rising he opened the doors of the house of the Lord.

He was afraid to go and tell Eli about what God had said.

Later when he was sitting on the temple steps, thinking about what had happened the night before a servant came by and said, "Master Eli would like to speak with you."

"Toda." Samuel nodded.

Slowly he rose and went to Eli.

"You called me?" Samuel asked.

"Well, now this time I called you." Eli smiled. "What did the Lord say to you?"

"Uh…"

"Do not hide it from me. May God deal with you, be it ever so severely, if you hide from me anything he told you." Eli demanded in a stern voice.

So Samuel told him all about what God had said, and hid nothing from him.

"He is the Lord; let him do what is good in his eyes." Eli praised God.

--

'_The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of his words fall to the ground.' _Samuel 3:19 (NIV)

--

Hebrew Translations:

Henay (Hee-nay) – Here I am

Morra (More-rra) – Teacher

Toda (Toe-da) – Thank you


End file.
